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Caden gave a sharp nod.
Trevor widened his eyes and shrugged his shoulders. “Just sitting on a bench watching the kids, I guess. Weird, right? Why go watch a bunch of kids if ya ain’t got any.” He snorted. “Hot as hell, but weird as shit. Night.”
Caden watched his son walk up the first two steps, trying to bite his tongue on asking more questions. But inside it was killing him. He figured he’d have time to talk to her after she and Trevor got home, but it didn’t pan out. Morning, he’d just have to wait till morning.
Trevor glanced over his shoulder, and his eyes darkened. The kid was tired, there was no doubt about it, but his face drooped into a serious scowl. “She looked sad. When I got close, her eyes were glassy like she’d been crying. She denied it, gave some lame allergy excuse, but I didn’t buy it.”
“You call her out on it?”
“Nah, I like Riss, didn’t want to make her more upset by calling her a liar.”
Caden nodded.
If he’d given it more thought, he probably would have waited till morning, but instead he found himself walking through the back lot and stopping at her small porch. He gave a sharp knock and waited. He listened and heard faint steps make their way to the door before she opened it. The soft light coming from the apartment illuminated her long T-shirt, which came to her mid-thigh. Otherwise her legs were bare. He trailed her body up to her face. Indifference was staring back at him. Not a trace of anger, but not an ounce of desire he’d seen the night before either.
He cleared his throat and rocked back on his heels. Marissa threw him off guard. He knew he’d fucked up.
“Figured I’d check on ya, make sure you’re good.”
“I’m fine.” She blinked and drew in a breath.
“How much I owe you for Trev’s dinner?”
“Nothing. I told him it was my treat.”
“I pay for my kid. How much?” There was a sharp bite to his tone. It stemmed from the awkwardness between them.
“It was free. For him.”
She wasn’t going to let him win on this. He glanced over his shoulder. This was an odd position for him. He was accustomed to women stalling to spend more time with him, not the other way around.
“You know how to work the heat?”
She furrowed her brow.
“Riss, temperature is dropping. Gonna freeze your ass off if you can’t work the thermostat.”
“I’m sure I’ll figure it out.”
He sighed. “Look, about this afternoon.” He paused, trying to come up with the words. He was failing. Apologizing was new for him. “I fucked up, and I just…”
“I’m not with him,” she blurted. She licked her bottom lip but refused to meet his stare. “I just want you to know that. Ryan is Janelle’s husband, and while he is also my ex, I haven’t been with him for seven years and not spoken to him in the last two.” She leaned back on her heels. “Just want you to know that.”
“Why didn’t you tell me this morning?”
She shrugged. “You got so mad so fast, and like I said, I don’t talk to him, so I didn’t know why he was calling.”
“Why did he call?”
She swallowed a breath and paused. She seemed to be gearing up to say something. “They just had another baby. She wanted him to let me know, so he called.”
“Oh fuck,” he whispered. He’d really fucked this up.
“Goodnight.” She grasped the door and pulled it, but he shot out his foot, stopping it from closing.
He sighed. “Let me explain.”
She tensed her lips into a flat line. “There’s nothing to explain.”
